Just To See You Smile
by goldgirlbomb
Summary: Bella has just recently joined the Sirius, and looking to escape her past, she isn't looking for love. But will love find her anyway?
1. Chapter 1

Bella looked out onto the ocean, leaning against the side of the ship. She took a ragged breath as she watched the sun begin to set. Her auburn hair blew restlessly in the gentle breeze, and she rolled her eyes, annoyed as it continuously got in her eyes. Roughly yanking at it, she pulled it up into a loose ponytail. Turning her attention back to the sunset, she tried to enjoy it for a few moments longer before she had to get back to work. She'd never really known how beautiful it was, but looking at it now just took her breath away. So much had happened recently that she hadn't really had the time to appreciate the little things such as this.

"Bella, it's time for dinner!" Fuzzy called behind her. Bella smiled and turned, heading towards her friend. Fuzzy had joined the Sirius only a little bit before she had, and the two had instantly formed a close friendship, as they were the only women on board. Due to her soft-spoken nature and shy nature, the rest of the guys sometimes were a little much for Bella to handle. And like a momma bear defending her cub; Fuzzy was always there to swoop in whenever she needed it.

"Have you heard anything from the Rika since you left?" Bella asked the two slowly walked.

Fuzzy shook her head. "Not a peep. Good thing too. Rotten dogs the lot of 'em." Fuzzy had previously been a crew member aboard the Rika under Captain Alan. And as she'd told Bella, she'd grown tired of Alan's reckless antics that only seemed to get them all in hot water. She'd run into the Sirius while they were all in port one day, and Morgan invited her to join the Sirius. Eagerly accepting the position, the rest had been history. But Alan still tried to get her to come back to the Rika with him, as she was a very handy crew member to have around.

Thomas dropped onto the deck from one of the masts in front of them. "Hey Miss Bella."

Bella smiled. "Thomas, I told you, you don't have to keep calling me 'miss' all the time. Just call me Bella."

Thomas rubbed the back of his neck with his hand, laughing. "Sorry, force of habit I guess."

When Bella had first come onto the Sirius, Morgan had placed her in Thomas's room, since his was the larger room and there were no more available rooms for her to have. She would've shared a room easily with Fuzzy, but Fuzzy was already bunked down with Russell, and was apparently quite comfortable there. Bella had been more than embarrassed sharing a room with a guy, but out of all the guys on board, she was glad it had been Thomas. He was almost as shy as she was, but he was kind to her and he always seemed to know just when she needed her space. And he was so polite to both her and Fuzzy, that she couldn't help but enjoy his company. Even if Fuzzy teased him relentlessly for it.

The three made their way down into the dining hall for dinner, where all the other guys had already collected. They dispersed themselves amongst the table, sitting in their usual spots as Nathan started bringing in dinner. Almost like a tradition, each member of the Sirius always sat in the same spot every night, and only changed seating whenever more members joined, or they had guests aboard. Fuzzy plopped down in her seat directly to Bella's right, sitting in between her and Russell. Bella always teased Fuzzy playfully about her and Russell, since she knew that Fuzzy had basically had the biggest crush on him since she joined. Fuzzy always denied it, but the way she always looked at him when he wasn't looking, Bella knew differently. To Bella's left sat Thomas, as he'd made it a point to always sit next to her ever since she'd come aboard. Perhaps he and Fuzzy had known just how nervous she'd been when she joined, and had wanted to comfort her by surrounding her with them. She didn't know for sure, but she suspected that was the case.

Fuzzy clapped her hands excitedly as Nathan placed her favorite meal in front of her. Bella had to hand it to Nathan, he always seemed to know exactly what to cook for each person to make them happy. Case in point, as he slid a plate of pasta in front of her, knowing that it was her favorite as well. She beamed up at him as he passed behind her, and he winked down at her as he moved onto the next person. She'd often helped Nathan down in the kitchen when no one else needed her help. While stern like Eduardo, he was much friendlier once you peeled back the layers. She began to look up to him like the big brother she'd never had. And he treated her accordingly, often teasing her the most out of all the crew.

The crew quietly ate the meals in front of them, barely looking up. Bella had found that the crew enjoyed devouring their meals, saving conversation for when they had all finished. A habit that she quite liked, since she was suddenly starving and began happily eating her meal. Nathan finished serving everyone and finally sat in his seat, quickly engulfing the food he'd set out for himself. His cooking was as splendid as usual, Bella noted as she happily munched on her pasta. She couldn't help but giggle as she glanced at Thomas and Russell, who were both slurping up their meals greedily like they hadn't eaten for days.

Bella quickly finished her dinner and began collecting plates from everyone, wanting to help clean up. She snatched up the empty bowls and plates and hustled over to the kitchen, tossing the dishes into the sink. It was her turn to do the dishes that night, and she wanted to go ahead get them done as quickly as possible. She could hear everyone chattering away as she scrubbed the plates clean. She smiled to herself as she heard the loud, boisterous laugher of Morgan as he laughed at something one of the other guys had said. Fuzzy purred something in, what Bella assumed was, Russell's direction. But apparently had gone unnoticed as Russell continued to laugh and talk with the rest of the guys. Bella giggled, poor Fuzzy. Bella scrubbed the last of the plates clean and dried her hands on the towel hanging nearby. She turned and went back into the dining hall with everyone else.

"You ready to head up to the eagle's nest?" Thomas asked happily, looking up at Bella.

The eagle's nest was the spot at the top of the main mast where Thomas had built a station for himself to watch out across the ocean, looking for any enemy ships. When she'd first joined, she had been curious as to what it was like up there, as she often looked up at the eagle's nest when she went to bed. One night after dinner, he asked her if she'd like to join him for his watch, noticing her curious gazes. She'd been reluctant, as it was quite high up in the air, but Thomas had assured her that he would be there with her. After reaching the top, she'd been glad that she'd agreed. It was by far and in her opinion, the best spot on the ship. You could look out for miles across the ocean, and had the best view of the sunset and sunrise from there. Seeing how much she enjoyed it, he invited her more and more often, until the point where she went up with him every night after dinner for his watch. It was also the one time of the day in which the two of them were completely alone, and away from everyone else, and both Thomas and herself seemed to relax around one another.

She nodded eagerly, and the two practically ran out of the dining hall. They ran across the deck like two school children, but neither cared. Bella's favorite part of the day was going up to the Eagle's Nest with Thomas, and she didn't care how excited she appeared about it. Thomas smiled and held a hand out to her as they reached the base, to let her to go up first. Bella laughed and took his hand, using it to grab a hold of the ladder. She climbed up the ladder up onto the platform above. It was night time by the time they had all finished dinner, and Bella admired as the sky started to become kissed by stars. She heard Thomas climb up behind her, and plop down in his seat on the other side of the platform.

Sighing contently, she took in a deep breath of the fresh ocean air. She wasn't sure how she'd lived so long without being on the ocean like this, but she knew she never wanted to part from it again. She loved everything about the ocean, the wonder and mystery within it. It excited her, even at it's worse times, and was more reliable than most of the people she'd met in her life, before coming on the Sirius that is.

Bella looked over at Thomas and smiled. "So where is it that we're going again?"

"Moldor I think. We're running low on some of our supplies and it's the closest port. I think Captain wanted to check in too to see if there were any new treasures for us to hunt for. If there aren't any, hopefully we can go on a nice long vacation."

"That would be nice! Where would we go?"

Thomas shrugged. "I'm not sure. I remember one time we went to this little island, a couple miles away from Yamato, that was really nice."

"Really?"

"It was great! Sunny skies, sandy beaches, and the clearest water you've ever seen. We only got to stay there a few days, but I've always wanted to go back."

Bella sighed. "I hope that we can. I'd like to see it."

Thomas ran a hand through his hair and glanced over at Bella. "So, Miss Bella…"

"Please Thomas," she interrupted, "call me Bella."

He laughed. "Sorry, I did it again didn't I?"

She smiled. "Yeah, you did."

"Sorry. I'd just gotten so used to calling you that, that it's hard to break it."

She giggled. "I understand. Why don't you just call me Bella when it's just us alone then? Until you get used to it that is, then you can start calling me it around everyone else."

He nodded, looking out at the clear night's sky. "I think I can do that … Bella…" Bella felt a blush rise up in her cheeks. She liked hearing him call her just by her name. It was nice, and felt like they had gotten closer.

"So… are you finally going to tell me what it was you did before you joined the Sirius?" He asked, keeping his gaze out on the horizon.

She looked down bashfully into her lap. She wasn't ready to tell _anyone _about what she did before she came onto the Sirius. "N-Not yet."

Thomas shrugged and looked back at her, the light from the moon reflecting off his eyes as he smiled gently at her. "That's all right. You'll tell me when you're ready then." Bella nodded, keeping her eyes averted from his, but she could sense his smile continuing to shine on her, and she couldn't help but to smile back.


	2. Chapter 2

The next day, Thomas was working up on one of the main masts when he saw Bella emerge from below deck. It was still fairly early in the morning, and was surprised to see her up so early. He'd heard her tossing and turning most of the night before, and assumed she hadn't gotten much sleep. Poor girl, even from up here he could see the faint bags under her eyes. He couldn't help but laugh to himself though. Despite the initial embarrassment, from both parties, Thomas had to admit that he enjoyed having her as a bunk mate. He'd given the bed up to her and had hung up a hammock across the room for himself, as he knew was the proper thing to do. But having her in the room every night, talking and laughing with him until they couldn't keep their eyes open any longer, made him happy. He couldn't help but wonder why…

Shaking his head, he looked down and couldn't help but watch as she went over to Fuzzy and conversed with her friend. The smile on her face of seeing her friend just lit up her face, and it reflected even on Fuzzy's face. In all the time he'd known Fuzzy, before she'd even joined the Sirius, she had never been one to smile too often. In fact, before she'd joined the Sirius, he could've counted on one hand the number of times he'd ever seen her smile. But with Bella around, the two were non-stop smiles, and without their knowing, had become the very heart of the ship. Though the guys on board teased and picked on both of them, it was those girls who brought life and energy to the ship.

He'd felt bad for her when she'd first come aboard, as timid and shy as she was. She reminded him of when he'd first come to the Sirius, the scared and quiet little boy he had once been. He'd shown her kindness almost solely because he felt sympathetic towards her, and then as he'd gotten to know her, he found himself wanting to be around her more and more. She was just that kind of person that brought a smile to your face without even trying. Though she probably didn't know it, her very presence on the ship ad brought a whole new life to the ship. She'd kind of become their mascot, always quietly cheering them on in the background. In the time she'd been on the ship, she'd shown her heart of gold through her very simple and often forgotten actions. But Thomas had noticed them, even if no one else did. She was kind to each member, and he'd never heard her say a cross word to any of them. In fact, Thomas couldn't recall if he'd _ever _heard her say anything cross or negative. She was quiet and reserved, but she was usually all smiles, encouraging each member in her own way.

He watched the two from above the ship, up on one of the masts. He leaned back onto the main mast, wiping sweat from his brow as the two set about cleaning the deck. Bella was certainly a mystery to him. She was a mystery to all of them. She'd shown up from practically no where, begging Captain to join the Sirius. None of them know where she'd come from, or why she'd even wanted to join. She was small and quiet, two things that were never found in pirates, or at least any Thomas had known. She didn't even appear to know much about a ship, as it had taken her at least a month to develop her sea legs. She learned quickly though, as he had shown her the basics of working and living on a pirate ship, he gave her that much. But it had surprised him at how little she'd initially known about a ship. All they knew about her were the select few things that she told them, which wasn't very much. She was a puzzling girl, but intriguing all the same.

Thomas tried to count the number of times he'd asked her about herself. He lost count after twenty or so, recalling how she'd try to avoid the subject all together. She knew a lot about him though. Whenever he asked about her, she always managed to switch things about and ask him something about himself. There was very little about him that she didn't know now, as he thought that by sharing things about himself, she would open up to him. It hadn't happened yet, but Thomas knew that with time, she might start to slowly open up. She had progressed over the course of the few months she'd been aboard, however. She was starting to at least talk a little more with everyone, other than just himself and Fuzzy. She'd also joined in on playfully teasing the other crew members, something he hadn't thought she would ever do. Curious indeed, that girl.

He continued to watch her and Fuzzy cleaning the deck, Fuzzy singly loudly as they worked. He watched as Fuzzy grabbed Bella's hand and attempted to get her to dance with her, singing loudly and very off key. Bella tugged at the sleeve of her shirt nervously, smiling at Fuzzy as she swung her about. Another curious thing Thomas had noticed during Bella's stay. In the entire time she'd been there, he had never seen her wear anything other than long sleeved shirts and long pants, even in the blazing heat of summer. He remembered hearing Nathan ask her about it once while she was helping him out in the kitchen. Thomas had gone down to grab something to drink and had just happened to hear their conversation. She'd merely shrugged the question off, saying something about liking longer clothing.

Thomas flicked another couple drops of sweat from his brow and went back to repairing the broken mast lines that had been tattered in the last storm. The lack of supplies hindered him from completely fixing the line, but mended it to the best of his ability. They would be able to pick up more supplies when they arrived in Moldor, and he could finish his work then. Becoming suddenly thirsty, he began to lower himself down to the deck.

As he plopped down onto the ground, he admired at how clean the girls had gotten the deck to look. He smiled up at Bella as she and Fuzzy celebrated their success. He grabbed the bottle of water he'd left out, and took a few swigs. The water felt cold and crisp against his dry throat, and he sighed. Leaning against the side of the ship, he let the gentle ocean breeze cool him down, deciding to take a break before continuing onto his next task. Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw Russell appear from below deck. Rubbing the back of his next, he joined Thomas, leaning on the ship next to him.

"You finish repairing the lines up there?" He asked him.

"I was able to repair some of them, but I ran out of supplies half way through. I mended the rest to the best of my ability, but I won't be able to finish with them until we make our stop in Moldor."

Russell nodded. "I talked to Eduardo earlier; he said we should be there within the next hour."

"That's good."

Russell grabbed the bottle of water from Thomas's hand and took a swig. "So, how are things with Bella?"

"What do you mean?"

Russell grinned. "You know exactly what I mean. It's rather obvious you know."

Thomas could feel as his face began to turn red, but cleared his throat. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Russell chuckled. "Sure you don't man."

Thomas narrowed his eyes at Russell. "Well how are things with you and Fuzzy? You looked rather chummy with her at breakfast this morning."

"Shut up."

"You can dish it out, but you can't take it, huh?" Thomas taunted, elbowing Russell playfully.

"I said shut up rookie." Russell replied curtly, but Thomas could see the corner's of his mouth tug into a small smile.

Russell patted him roughly on the back and walked away, heading over towards the girls, who were putting away their cleaning supplies. As he walked away, Thomas took another swig from his water bottle. Did he like Bella? He hadn't been to sure of it himself lately, but he knew he felt something for her. And it was definitely more than friendship. Not that he would ever actually say anything to her about it. He too was a shy creature at times, and felt he would surely die of embarrassment if he ever breathed a word of it to her.

Thomas watched as Russell talked with the girls, laughing about something. He was too far out of ear shot to hear what they were saying, but Bella and Fuzzy were both grinning, so he assumed Russell was complimenting their work on the deck. Russell reached forward to give Fuzzy a high five, and Fuzzy instantly returned the high five, her face lit up with joy. Fuzzy had been head over heels for him for a while now, and everyone on the ship seemed to know it except Russell. He knew Russell liked her as well, just from the goofy expression he had on his face whenever he was around her. But Thomas smiled to himself, knowing that Russell was about as hard-headed as they come, and was probably as close to confessing to Fuzzy as he was to being King of Moldor.

Thomas knit his brows together as he watched Russell bring his hand up to give Bella a high five as well, and watched closely at her reaction. It was very subtle, and both Fuzzy and Russell hadn't seemed to notice it, as Bella had quickly returned the gesture. But Thomas had certainly seen it. She'd flinched.


	3. Chapter 3

Bella stood on the deck, watching as the ship began to dock into the port at Moldor. It had been quite some time since they'd last been there, but Bella always enjoyed stopping in. She looked forward to the pastry shop next to the main marketplace in town that she'd stopped by last time. She and Thomas had broken off from the rest of the group to explore, and had come across the little shop. The remembrance of the treat she'd gotten there last, so warm and doughy, caused her to drool a little. She wiped furiously at it with her sleeve, hoping none of the other guys had seen it.

Thomas walked up next to her, leaning against the side of the ship next to her. "You must be looking forward to getting that pastry treat you liked so much before."

Bella blushed and laughed. "No we don't have to, it's ok. There's a lot of things that we have to get for the ship while we're here, so there won't be any time for that."

Thomas smiled. "Nonsense. I'll make it my personal mission to get you one of those pastries again."

"Y-You don't have to do that…"

"I want to. You seemed to really like it, almost as much as you seem to enjoy Nathan's cooking. Plus, there's not a whole ton that we need to get while we're here."

"I don't want to inconvenience you…"

Thomas turned and looked at her. "It's not an inconvenience. I'd like to get one of those pastries myself, they were quite delicious, weren't they?

Bella grinned. "Yes they were. Especially the one with the chocolate in the middle."

"That one was my favorite as well. It's settled then, we'll go grab a couple of things for the ship, and then we'll sneak off to delve into those sweet treats. But you'll have to stick close to me while we're there. It's supposed to be really crowded there this time of year. Deal?"

"Deal." She replied. Thomas smiled at her softly and turned around, heading towards the mast.

She watched him climb up, so he could start tying down some of the sails. A blush rose to her cheeks as she continued to watch him, balancing up high on the mast as if it were just a walk in the park. He always seemed to be looking out for her, whether she realized it at the time or not. And he always seemed to read her mind all the time, knowing exactly what she was thinking. Was she really that readable? ... No, she didn't think that was it. She was always careful about that… Thomas just seemed to know her so well that he barely had to ask her. She smiled, she liked that about him. He was always so patient with her, even when she avoided his questions sometimes. Shaking her head, she rubbed the back of her neck and groaned. Why was she staring at him like some smitten school girl? Oh no, she wasn't starting to have feelings for him, was she? That was the last thing she needed in her life at that point.

The ship pulled into the port a few short minutes later, and the Sirius crew began tying the ship down. Bella stayed out of the way of them, letting them work. A while back, she had tried to help with the ship. But her small body proved more of a hindrance than a help, so the guys had just asked her to sit back whenever they were pulling into port. Fuzzy came over and joined Bella by the side of the ship, watching as the rest of the crew finished anchoring the ship in place. Morgan climbed down the stairs onto the deck and came and stood in front of the group, after they'd gathered together.

"Alright, everyone have their lists of the things we need? You may go ahead and split up into your groups now. I'll see you all back here in a few hours." Morgan said as he walked down to the dock, heading to the bar he usually went to when they were in Moldor.

Nathan and Eduardo walked ahead of the rest of them, heading down the dock to the food section of the market so Nathan could get more supplies for the kitchen. Russell and Fuzzy soon followed, with Fuzzy clinging happily to Russell's side to head to the weapons section of the market. Thomas turned and smiled at Bella, then made his way down to the dock with Bella in tow. They were to head to the hardware section of the market, so Thomas could get some more of the supplies he needed to fix the masts. The hardware section was located in the further part of the market, towards the back end of town. It usually took them longer than the others to return to the ship, so they took their time as they began walking through town.

Thomas looked over at her as they made their way through the crowd. "Is there anything you'd like to look at while we're here?"

"Hm?" She asked, unable to hear him through the loud chatter that filled the streets.

"I asked you if there was anything you wanted to see while we were here. Other than the pastry shop that is."

Bella shook her head. "Oh no, I'm fine! Nothing that I need! But thank you!"

Thomas smiled. "I know a vendor that sells most of the stuff we need for the ship so when we get done we'll head to that pastry shop, ok?"

She smiled over at him. "Alright."

They ambled slowly through the streets, making their way through the afternoon crowd. It was around lunchtime, and the streets were filled with people. Workers hurried through the streets as they ran their select errands during their lunch breaks, hurrying along with the rest of the crowd. Others ambled by at the same pace they were, already finished with their workday and in no rush to get to where they were going. Bella enjoyed Moldor. It was much better, much cleaner, than her own home town. The streets had been filled with muck, and the only jobs available were through a local factory. Workers trudged through the streets miserably the same times every day, their eyes hopeless as their local economy plummeted into despair. A dark time for a dark place, and Bella was glad she'd made the decision to leave and head to Yamato, where she'd come aboard the Sirius.

Bella's thoughts drifted back to reality as she felt something bump into her side. She looked over to see that a small child had been running along, not paying attention, and had run right into her side. The child, a little girl, fell to the ground beside her. Bella quickly knelt down to the child and pulled them to their feet. She crouched down in front of the small little girl in front of her, lightly patting off some of the dirt on her pants.

"Are you alright dear?" She asked the blushing little girl.

The girl nodded fiercely. "Yes ma'am, sorry I bumped into you."

Bella smiled. "It's quite alright, just make sure to watch where you're going, ok?"

The little girl flashed Bella a grin. "I will! Thanks!"

Waving her hand, the little girl turned around and ran off back into the ground. Bella stood back to her feet and smiled, waving back to the girl as she disappeared from her sight. Turning back around she quickly realized that she had become separated from Thomas. Her eyes widened and she looked around, standing on her toes to look around the crowd. He was just there, she was sure of it. He'd just been right in front of her. Maybe he hadn't seen the little girl run into her, and had kept going? They were heading up towards the hardware section, maybe he'd just continued on up there? She could just try to run towards it and catch up with him…. Oh but….Where was it again? It had been a while since they'd been there, and Bella couldn't remember where it was. She'd always just followed Thomas, since he knew where it was, and hadn't bothered to pay attention. Her sudden onslaught of panic didn't help her either.

She began frantically searching the streets for him. She had been behind him, lost in her own thoughts, when the little girl had bumped into her. It'd probably actually been her fault to start with, walking in the direct path of the little girl and knocking her over. Thomas probably hadn't even seen her stop, and had continued on. She was at a major disadvantage, as she was quite a bit shorter than the rest of the crowd, and was unable to see ahead. She took in a deep breath, trying to remain calm as the crowd thickened from the lunch crowd.

Up ahead, she could see the town fountain, its water shooting up into the air. She made her way towards it, hoping to get a better view point. The last time they had been there, she remembered walking past the fountain. She remembered because Thomas had made a comment to her about how cool he thought it was. Maybe he'd gone there to wait for her? She wasn't sure but it was certainly worth a try. Excusing herself through the hoard of people, she finally reached the fountain edge, and stepped up onto the side. At the very least, she would be able to look over everyone to see if she could see him.

She scanned through the crowd to see if she could see his flaming orange hair amongst the people, as his hair was quite unique to this particular region. She felt awful as she scanned each individual, knowing that she would have to apologize profusely to Thomas for being separated from him. She should've just said something to him, to let him know she'd stopped, and this wouldn't have happened. He would probably get angry with her for leaving his side, she wasn't sure. She'd never seen him angry before, but she'd seen how the tiniest of events could send someone into a rage, and was afraid that this might anger him. She felt like kicking herself as she looked through the crowd again, not seeing him upon her first search.

As she scanned through the crowd one last time, her eyes locked in on one individual, a man, who seemed to be looking back at her. His familiar cold eyes bore into hers and Bella couldn't help but feel a slight panic begin to rise. She rubbed her eyes and blinked a few times, looking back to see that the man had disappeared. She looked around briefly again to see where he had gone to, but couldn't find him again. Her hand shook slightly as she lowered herself from the side of the fountain, and sat down on the edge. I was impossible…It couldn't have been him, could it?


	4. Chapter 4

Thomas had been walking through the market for quite some time, walking in silence when he looked back to check in to see how Bella was. She had been quiet for a good ten minutes, and he was beginning to wonder if she was alright. She wasn't a chatty person, but the two of them usually talked a good bit when they were wandering around the market. As he turned to look at her, he swiftly realized, to his horror, that she wasn't there. It took him a moment, as he looked through the crowd behind him, before he began running. He quickly began back-tracking where they had been walking, calling out her name as he began to desperately search for her.

Where had she gone? She'd just barely been behind him the whole time. Had she gotten caught in the crowd somewhere? Had she called out to him, and he just hadn't heard? He mentally kicked himself as he squeezed through the crowd. He should have been paying more attention. Moldor was an extremely busy place this time of day, and particularly this time of the year when the summer weather was beginning to roll in, and a lot of ships came into port. Especially other pirate ships. Pirate ships were always known for making more stops into port towns to gather more water and food supplies. What if Bella had gotten caught up with some of the other pirates in town? Worse, what if the Rika was there?

Thomas groaned as he continued to search, standing on his toes to look over the crowd. Captain Alan, in particular, was who Thomas began to worry about the most. A few months back he and the Rika had suddenly popped in, coming aboard the Sirius to taunt Morgan about something, Thomas couldn't remember what. But with Alan, it was probably something miniscule and was just something he wanted to brag about to make himself feel more important. Bella had been on the deck, helping him untangle some of the ropes, when Alan had come down from speaking with Morgan up in his office. He'd laid eyes on Bella and had apparently been smitten, or so he claimed very loudly. He'd come over to her and had tried to convince her to run away with him, or some nonsense like that. But she'd appeared frightened of his rather aggressive mode of trying to woo her, and it had taken both him and Eduardo to peel Alan away from her. Alan said that he would come back for her one day, and had gone back to the Rika. But that had been months ago, and he hadn't been back since. Thomas hadn't seen the Rika when they'd been in the port earlier, so he hoped that he wasn't anywhere nearby. Especially with Bella all by herself now, if he was close by, she would be in danger of being kidnapped by him.

The lunch crowd started to die down slowly around him as people began slowly heading back to work. Thomas hoped that it would make his search easier, having less people roaming around. He thought of Bella and how frightened she must be all alone with all of these people around her. Ahead, he could see the town's large oak tree and made his way towards it. It was a quite tall tree, its branches reaching high into the air, and spreading over the town like wings. Having been so large, the town had merely paved the cobble-stone streets around it, and had become one of the main attractions of the town. It had gotten hotter that day, and the shade would prove a much cooler place. Maybe she'd gone there to wait for him?

He made it to the tree and frantically searched around its girth, hoping Bella would be somewhere underneath. But to his disappointment, she was nowhere nearby. In frustration, he kicked the tree and rubbed the back of his neck. He stepped up onto one of the roots that had grown up through the ground, hoping maybe he could get a better vantage point. No such luck there as well. Although her auburn hair would stand out in the crowd, being quite small in stature, he wouldn't be able to see her hair amongst the crowd anyway. A bird landed on a branch next to Thomas, and he briefly looked over at it, as it began whistling near his ear. It was a little bluebird, smaller than most Thomas had seen before.

Bella reminded him so much of a bluebird, he thought as he shoved through a group of men. When he'd been a young boy, living at home, he'd always seen them outside his window. He remembered thinking of how joyful and cheerful they always appeared, always whistling a happy tune. But they were also easily spooked if you got too close to it. Just like Bella. She was a shy and often quiet person, but she always appeared to be happy around everyone.

He made his way back towards the town central, and looked over towards the main fountain. He remembered making a comment the last time they'd been in the market about it, maybe she'd remembered that and had gone there. He excused himself through a crowd of women surrounding one of the food stands, and made his way towards the fountain. Thomas squinted his eyes and saw a woman sitting down on the edge of the fountain, on the other side. Her auburn hair shined in the sunlight and he began to run towards the woman. As he rounded the corner, relief swept over him as he saw Bella sitting there, looking down at the ground. He called her name out as he ran towards her, and she looked up, smiling weakly at him. He stopped in front of her and placed his hands on his knees, panting and laughing all at the same time.

"Thank goodness I found you." He panted, smiling up at her.

Her fingers tangled with one another in her lap. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to get separated from you."

"It's alright, I'm just glad that I found you. Are you ok?" He asked.

She nodded, but looked down at the ground, her eyes diverting away from his. "P-Please don't be mad at me. I didn't mean to get lost. I was going to try to just catch up with you at the hardware section, but I couldn't remember where it was. I'm sorry…"

Thomas knitted his brows together and looked up at her. "Why would I be mad at you?"

"I wasn't paying attention like I should have. I ended up taking precious time out of the day, when we could have been getting supplies for the ship, for you to have to come look for me."

Thomas laughed and sat down next to her. "I doubt the guys will mind terribly if we spend a few extra minutes out here. It's not a big deal, don't worry about it."

She hadn't seemed to have heard what he'd said, and just repeated herself, looking down at her lap. "Please don't be mad."

He laughed. "I'm not mad, I promise."

Thomas went to put a hand on her shoulder, to squeeze it gently to comfort her. He had no idea why she would think he would get mad at her for something like that. It hadn't been her fault, it'd been his. He was the one who should have been paying more attention. But it was then, when he put his hand on her shoulder, that he realized that she was shaking. Her body was shivering as if they were sitting in the midst of a winter breeze. But the weather was warm, and the sun was blazing in the early summer month. His eyes widened and he quickly went and dropped down onto his knees in front of her, lifting her chin to look at him.

"Bella what's wrong? Did something happen? Why are you shaking?" He asked softly, looking her over frantically to see if she was injured.

She shook her head. "No, I'm fine, I'm sorry. I just got a sudden cold chill for some reason is all, I'm sorry. Please don't worry."

Without thinking he bent forward and pulled her into his arms, pressing her into his chest as his arms wrapped around her. He knew she was lying, just from the look in her eye. Something had spooked her, that much was obvious to him. She would likely never admit it to him, but Thomas knew better. Bella didn't shiver or shake like that for no reason. Granted she was a smaller woman, but she was always bundled in her long sleeved shirts and long pants, there was no reason for her to be cold in this kind of weather. Thomas wanted desperately to hit himself for not being there for her when she needed it. She resisted him only for a moment, flinching in his grasp as she had when Russell had gone to give her a high five days before.

"Thomas you don't…" She started, but Thomas silenced her by squeezing her gently.

"Sorry to suddenly hug you like this. Just stay like this until you calm down, ok?" He whispered into her ear. She nodded into his shoulder and he felt her arms slowly wrap around him, to return his embrace. What could have possibly frightened her this much?


	5. Chapter 5

He hadn't asked her anymore questions after they'd left the fountain together. She was grateful for that. She hadn't wanted to talk about it, and Thomas didn't press her for answers, even though she knew he deserved them. They'd gone to the hardware section together after that, Thomas insisting she hold onto his arm as they walked over together so as not to separate from her again. He'd smiled at her the whole time, as if he'd known just how much his smile comforted her. And it had.

They'd gone up to the vendor Thomas had talked about earlier that day, and they made their purchases. Bella helped him to the best of her ability, but she was nowhere near an expert when it came to this sort of thing, so she merely helped him to collect all of the things they needed. They had been in luck, as the man had all the things that Thomas needed to repair the mast, as well as several other things that the ship needed. Bella was relieved that they hadn't had to travel from stand to stand to get their things, as her little delay had cost them at least half an hour, and the sun had started to set. She grabbed one of the bags from the man, as Thomas paid him, and had filled the bag up with their purchases. Thomas, though, wouldn't let her carry it, even though she volunteered to countless times.

They made their way back down the street when Thomas had pulled her down one street. She'd asked him where they were going, as they made their way further down the street, curiously looking around at the unfamiliar vendor stands that she hadn't known had been there before. He said that they were going to the pastry shop together, but he also wanted to grab something from one of the stands he'd seen. She'd of course told him that they didn't need to go in, as they needed to return to the ship soon, but Thomas had insisted. The delicious scent of her favorite treat fogged her mind, and she'd followed him inside. He bought both of them one of the treats, and he instructed her to wait in the shop until he returned.

Why was he so nice to her? She kept asking herself that as she waited, munching on her delicious treat. She certainly never asked or expected him, or any other man for that matter, to be. But he was. He was so unconditionally kind to her, that it always surprised her. He treated her with so much care, but never asked her for anything in return. He would ask her questions about herself, but wouldn't push her to answer them if he knew she wasn't comfortable answering them. What was with this guy? Weren't guys supposed to brutish creatures who only thought of themselves? But Thomas wasn't like that. He'd held her in his arms so gently when she had been shaking. It was so warm and wonderful that Bella couldn't help but let him. No one had ever done something like that to her. Ever.

Thomas returned a few short minutes later, but wouldn't tell her where he had gone to, he just said that he just wanted to get something. Bella didn't push the subject, and the two started to head back to the ship, watching as the sky started to darken. They returned back to the ship a short while later, at the same time Fuzzy and Russell arrived back. Russell, like Thomas, was carrying the bag of their supplies, and waved over at them as they saw the two. Fuzzy ran up to Bella and embraced her, smiling her typical goofy smile. The four of them then walked up onto the ship. Thomas smiled at Bella and headed, with Russell, to the supply room to put away their things. Fuzzy pulled something she'd been hiding behind her back, and held out a bag to Bella. She waited for Bella to slowly take the item from her, Bella looking at her confusedly.

Bella cocked her head to the side as she looked at Fuzzy curiously. "What's this?"

"Something I got for you while Russell and I were out. Thought you would like it!"

"Y-You didn't have to get me anything Fuzzy, really this is too much!" Bella said, not even peering into the bag.

"Well I did, so get over it. Just open it would ya?" Fuzzy said, gesturing to the bag.

Bella looked from Fuzzy to the small bag in her hands, and slowly went to pull its contents out. The wrapping paper around it crinkled as Bella pulled a long-sleeved t-shirt from the bag. She held it out in front of her to look closely at the fabric. Dark green in color, it was intricately decorated with lace around the v-neckline. It was certainly smaller in size than the slightly baggy t-shirts she'd been wearing, but it was so pretty that Bella couldn't help but grin.

"Oh Fuzzy it's so pretty I love it… but I couldn't possibly wear this!"

Fuzzy rolled her eyes and smiled. "Of course ya can. I noticed how you're always wearing those baggy ass long shirts, and girl let me tell you, you could definitely use this. You've got a nice little figure and it's a shame you keep hiding it. Plus, the green would really pretty with your red hair."

Bella blushed. "I…I can't take this Fuzzy…"

"Look, you don't have to wear it right off the bat. Wear it when you're ready to, but don't be so afraid to look like a girl. Plus the way you've been ogling Mr. Thomas lately, it wouldn't hurt to dress up a little."

"Og-Ogling?! I… I haven't been ogling, I swear I just…." Bella sputtered, her face turning an even deeper shade of red.

Fuzzy laughed and patted Bella on the back. "It's ok to look! He's a nice kid too. Think you two would go well together."

Bella shook her head. "I'm… I'm the last person who needs to be in a relationship right now… believe me… Thomas is better off…"

Fuzzy knitted her eyebrows together. "What do you mean?"

Luckily for Bella, Russell returned back to the deck, and Russell called over to Fuzzy. "Hey! Quit bugging Bella and go help Nathan with dinner! It's your turn to help him tonight."

Bella let out a little sigh of relief as Fuzzy smiled at her and headed to the kitchen. "Just keep the shirt at least would ya? And don't you dare try to give it back."

Bella couldn't help but smile. "Thank you Fuzzy."

"Welcome!" Fuzzy called over her shoulder as she disappeared into the kitchen.

Bella rubbed the back of her neck and headed down to her and Thomas's room. The shirt really was lovely, and Bella appreciated Fuzzy thinking of her. But there was a very slim chance she would ever actually wear it. Folding it delicately, she tucked it into one of the drawers, and sat on the bed for a moment. She'd been so flustered with Fuzzy talking about her and Thomas that she'd almost told her... Sighing, she was glad Russell had interrupted them, or she might have. She didn't want any of them to know about it, about her past. Even Fuzzy and Thomas.

"Russell said Fuzzy got you something while they were out." A familiar voice said, and Bella looked up at Thomas as he walked into their room.

She smiled. "Yeah, a really nice shirt."

"That was nice of her."

"Yeah it was. I admit, I feel really bad though. I don't think I'll ever actually wear it. It's a little too…. Revealing."

Thomas laughed. "Yeah, that sounds like something would get. Don't worry, I'm sure she knows you wouldn't wear something you're not comfortable wearing. You could always wear it underneath a jacket or something like during the winter."

Bella nodded. "I hadn't thought of it that way! I'm sure she would like that! Hey, is the Sirius setting sail soon?"

"Yeah, we actually just shoved off. We'll be out on open seas here soon."

"Are we heading anywhere in particular?"

"Not that I'm aware of. Once we're out on calm water though, I do know that the guys wanted to take a training day."

"A training day?"

Thomas nodded as he tossed his things next to his hammock. "Yeah. Every now and then, we like to brush up on our skills. You know, make sure we're not getting old and rusty. They just wanted to take a day or so to get some training in while the weather is good."

"You going to practice your sword fighting with Russell?"

Thomas laughed. "Probably. Although Russell is a lot better at it than I am, so I'll probably have a hard time keeping up."

"You're still really good at it! And at least you actually know how to use one. I wouldn't know what to do with one even if you put it in my hand!" She teased.

He shrugged. "I can teach you if you want to."

"R-Really?"

"Sure, why not? Need to learn how to use a weapon of some sort in case you need to. Wouldn't hurt to start out with a sword."

Bella blushed. "I'd… I'd actually really like that."

Thomas smiled warmly at her. "Then it's settled. Once everyone else starts training, I'll teach you some basics on how to use a sword. Ok?"

"Ok!" Bella replied, returning his smile.

Her heart fluttered in her chest as he stuck his hand out to her, to shake. Slowly, she placed her hand in his and shook gently. His hand was so much bigger than hers, and so warm that she couldn't help but smile brighter. His smile widened at her as well, looking down at her warmly as he released her hand and nodded towards the door. She followed after him as they headed back upstairs towards the dining hall where dinner would be served shortly.

Maybe she was starting to have feelings for him after all? But Bella knew that if she knew what was good for her, and Thomas, she would stay far away when it came to that.


	6. Chapter 6

A few days later, Thomas was up on the mast, trying to finish repairing the damages. He'd gotten most of it done, and was just double checking the lines to make sure they were stable. They'd gotten enough supplies for him to repair the damaged lines, and to reinforce some of the others as well. Wiping some sweat from his forehead, he pulled at the line and was satisfied when it held up strong. It had gotten a lot hotter the past few days, and the blazing sun was taking its toll on his energy. He climbed down the mast onto the deck and stretched. He looked up into the clear blue sky and smiled, it sure had been a beautiful few days.

He felt someone tap him from behind and saw Bella looking up at him, smiling and holding out a bottle of water. "You looked thirsty earlier so I brought you some water."

"I was just thinking I was thirsty, thank you!" He replied, graciously taking the bottle from her.

"Did you finish repairing the lines?"

Thomas took a healthy gulp from the bottle before he answered. "Yeah, they're all fixed now. Hopefully they'll hold up better now if we do get into another storm."

Bella smiled. "That's great!"

"What's great?" A voice came from behind Thomas and he turned to see Morgan making his way towards them.

"Thomas finished repairing the lines!"

"That is indeed good news." Morgan said as he came and stood next to the two.

Thomas took another gulp from his bottle, enjoying the cool water splashing against his dry throat. "What are the plans for now Captain?"

"Well, I was talking to the other guys just now, and we've decided that since the weather has been so good lately, we would go ahead and have training today."

"Probably as good a day as any. I saw some storm clouds while on watch last night, should be here in the next day or so."

Morgan nodded. "Ah yes, good a time as any then. And tonight we've also decided to have a party, so make sure not to exert yourselves too much this afternoon."

Bella knitted her eyebrows together. "A party? What for?"

"Well, it's been almost exactly six months since you and Fuzzy joined us, and we wanted to celebrate you two being official Sirius pirates." Morgan replied.

Bella blushed. "Oh no you guys don't have to go to so much trouble just for that!"

Thomas smiled down at her. "It's not any trouble. Russell told me about it earlier this morning. It's just our way of welcoming you, and Fuzzy both. We have parties all the time on board so this isn't any formal event. Just all of us together."

Morgan nodded. "Yes, it's basically just our excuse to get roaring drunk anyway."

Thomas laughed. "_Your _excuse Captain."

Morgan waved over his shoulder at them as he made his way back up to his office. "Yes, yes, in any case. See you two later this evening."

Bella turned to Thomas and looked up at him. "Will he really get that drunk tonight?"

"You never know with Captain. He'll drink, that much I don't doubt. How much he'll drink is the question."

Bella giggled. "I see…"

"Well, come on, we better get started."

"Started?"

"I told you the other day that I would teach you the basics of sword fighting, so we might as well get a start on it before it gets too hot." Thomas replied as he walked over and grabbed his wooden sword and his spare, bringing it over to Bella and handing it to her.

She smiled brightly up at him. "Really? You'll teach me now?"

He nodded. "Of course. I promised didn't I?"

"Are you sure you don't want to spar with Russell? He's much better than I am…"

Thomas laughed. "He told me earlier that he was helping Fuzzy with her fencing skills as well today so please don't worry about it. Besides, I'd rather spend my time with you." As soon as the words came out of his mouth, his eyes widened and he felt himself blush. Before she could think about what he'd said, he quickly began his lesson.

Standing in the first basic fighting stance, he held the sword out, waiting until she mimicked his movement. Clumsily she held the wooden sword, wavering slightly as she was unused to the object. Thomas smiled as he watched her trying to adjust her position to match his. It was obvious she had never used a weapon of this sort before. He'd seen her, not but a month or so ago, practicing with Eduardo on her shooting. Eduardo had stated that both of the girls had needed to at least have some knowledge on shooting the pistols on board. He'd taken both of them up to the deck and had them shoot out at the sea, to get used to it. Thomas had watched from up in the rafters. Even for a beginner, Bella had been pretty decent with the pistol. But as he smiled, her hand shaking slightly as she held up the wooden sword, he knew that she would need a little practice with this skill.

Pointing with his fingers, he tried to show her where to hold her arm, but her hands awkwardly moved to where she thought he was pointing. It was probably best for him just to show her. He motioned for her to stay where she was, and walked around the back of her. She remained motionless, following him with her eyes as he walked behind her. Although his cheeks burned furiously as he did it, he reached around her to adjust her arms and her hand positioning. Clearing his throat, he then went back and picked up his own sword and held it up. Her face was red as well, and he only hoped he hadn't made her uncomfortable.

Thomas instructed her for a better part of the afternoon, through the blazing summer sun. After she'd mastered how to hold the sword and how to swing it properly, he began to show her how to fence properly. He saw the sweat dripping down the side of her face, panting as she gave it her best effort. She had to have been hot in those long clothes. Hell, he was hot and he was wearing a short sleeved t-shirt. But she didn't complain once of the heat, and continued to follow his instruction diligently. With some practice, she could easily be a good sparring partner for him.

She was a hard worker he noted as she practiced. He'd offered several times to stop for them to take a rest, but she'd refused. She'd said she wanted to keep practicing and working until she was too tired to move. He had to give her credit for that. She may have been smaller than he was, but she definitely made up for it in determination. But she was so shy and quiet most of the time, he would have never seen this side of her if he hadn't offered to teach her.

She seemed more relaxed around him as well. That was good wasn't it? There'd been a time when she was so tense around him that she barely even spoke. But now here she was, smiling and laughing with him as she learned how to fence. Slowly she was starting to let her guard down around him, and he hoped that one day he would finally let her in. Every minute he spent with her, the more he wanted to know about her, more than he wanted anything else. What was this feeling? Why was her laugh the most beautiful sound he'd ever heard? He tried to impress her at one point by attempting to show her some fancy fencing technique, but had failed miserably. She'd tried to hide it, probably trying to make him feel less like an idiot for messing up, but she'd giggled and smiled at him. It made his heart thunder in his chest, and he hoped more than anything, that he could see that smile she'd given him on her face every day. Why was her happiness starting to become more important to him than anything? He couldn't understand it…

Could it be ... Was Russell right after all? Was he in love with her? Thomas had looked up at her as she'd been practicing another technique he'd shown her, and she'd looked up at him and waved. A smile plastered on her face, she'd waved at him. And he knew. It hit him like a ton of bricks, so much so that he held onto the side of the ship for support. Russell had been right after all. He was in love with her. She meant more to him than he'd ever realized. And as he watched her, he knew he'd wait a lifetime if that was what it took, for her.

As the sun finally began to set, Thomas decided to call it quits for the day. "I think you've had enough for one day." Bella nodded and panted, handing him her sword to put away.

She looked up at him. "Ok, thank you again for teaching me! I really appreciate it!"

"Not a problem. Don't hesitate to ask again if you'd like try again!" He replied as he grabbed two bottles of water and handed one to her. She eagerly took the bottle and took several healthy gulps, draining almost half the bottle in just a few seconds. The two leaned against the side of the ship, sighing as the evening breeze cooled their heated bodies.

"When is this party supposed to be?" Bella asked, taking another swig from her bottle.

Thomas shrugged. "Not sure exactly, probably not too long from now though. We stayed out a little later than everyone else did, so we'll probably have to get ready soon."

"Is this something I need to dress up for?"

Thomas chuckled. "No, just wear whatever you want."

"Ok."

Thomas smiled. "Oh, by the way. I wanted to show you something before the party, come with me, I left it down in our room."

Bella cocked her head to the side. "What is it?"

"It's a surprise."


	7. Chapter 7

Bella followed after Thomas as they walked downstairs toward their room. She'd been so thrilled at Thomas showing her how to use a sword properly, and how to fence. She'd always wanted to learn, but had never had the time. But when he'd offered her, she couldn't help but to accept instantly. She'd almost felt bad accepting something like that from him so quickly, assuming he'd only offered just to be nice, but he seemed so genuinely happy about it that it had made her even happier. Was that even possible?

He'd taken his time with her, and had shown her several times how to do something before asking her to try. She knew how skilled he was at it, as she'd seen him sparring with Russell a few times. She'd initially been afraid that she wouldn't be able to keep up with him, but he made sure to keep pace with her, and to break down each movement for her. He was so patient and gentle that it had just come so easily to her. He really was an excellent teacher. She'd have to tell him that some time, although she was too shy to say so now.

She followed behind him as they slowly descended the stairs. He'd said that he wanted to show her something, but wouldn't tell her what. The curiosity ate at her, what was it? He'd had this look on his face that she hadn't been able to comprehend. She found herself feeling excited for whatever awaited her. The two stepped inside their room, and Thomas closed the door behind them.

He smiled at her as he walked over towards his hammock and picked up a small box from his belongings. "Go stand in front of that mirror for me and turn around, and close your eyes."

She looked at him curiously. "What for?"

He chuckled. "Just do it for me will ya?"

Slowly she walked towards the mirror and stood in front of it. She cringed slightly at her disheveled appearance, sweaty looking from all of her practicing. Her nose wrinkled slightly as she looked at herself, but as she heard Thomas clearing his throat exaggeratingly behind her, she smiled and closed her eyes. She gradually closed her eyes, wondering what it was he was up to. She heard him walking towards her, his footsteps creaking against the hard wooden floor. He took his time making his way towards her, as if he knew the anticipation was killing her, stopping just behind her. She flinched slightly as she felt him wrapping something around her neck, and was tempted to peak, but couldn't bring herself to. He fiddled with something behind her neck for a moment before she heard him take a step back. What was this around her neck?

"Alright, you can open your eyes now." He said softly. Her eyelids fluttered open and she looked at herself in the mirror once again. Around her neck she could see a small necklace, and leaned into the mirror to get a better look at it. A short golden chain wrapped delicately around her throat, hugging it gently, with a small pendant dangling in the middle. She lifted the pendant up to look at it more closely, and saw a beautiful little bluebird, spreading its wings majestically. It brought tears to her eyes as she looked at it, and it took her a moment to speak.

"T-Thomas…"

He smiled. "If you're thinking of saying any nonsense about not being able to accept it or anything like that, you can forget it. I saw it the last time we were in the market and it made me think of you."

"But w-why …?" She replied, trying to hold back her tears. No one had ever given her anything like this. It was so beautifully simple, but it held a thousand more words than she express. She'd always loved bluebirds, ever since she was a little girl. There hadn't been much life or hope in the town she'd grown up in, but every now and again, she would hear a little bluebird outside her window. Singing to her it's unique song, and it gave her optimism for the future. It had served as her small ray of sunshine in her world of darkness, and the little bluebird pendent he'd just given her meant so much more to her than she could ever say. But how had Thomas known…?

He shrugged his shoulders. "It might sound silly, but you kind of remind me of a bluebird. So when we were in Moldor I had to get it for you. I thought you might like it."

Before she could even think about it, she spun around and threw her arms around him. She didn't even know why she'd suddenly been so overcome with emotion. It was just something so typical of Thomas, something like this, that it touched her heart in more ways than she could ever say. He was making her fall in love with him, and she wasn't sure he was even aware of it. It was a terrible idea, especially given her past, but as she held onto him, the idea didn't seem quite as scary as it would have a year ago. Thomas seemed startled at first at her action, but quickly relaxed and wrapped his arms around her, hugging her into his chest.

"I love it." She whispered into his chest.

His arms tightened around her. "I'm glad."

"I'm sorry I'm always so secretive around you…"

The vibration of his chuckle tickled her cheeks. "You'll tell me when you're ready. Until then, I can be patient."

Her arms tightened around him for a moment, breathing in that smell that was purely Thomas. Why did he have to be so nice to her? It would have been easier for her if he'd just been like everyone else she'd met before joining the Sirius. Cold, distant, uncaring. Worse, he could have been like… That would have made it easier for her to stay away from him, as she knew she should. But every time he smiled down at her, said something no one else ever had, held her gently, she slowly felt herself giving in.

She cleared her throat and pulled away from him, embarrassed as she absent-mindedly placed a hand over her necklace. "I'd… I'd better get ready for the party."

"Yeah, me too. I'm gonna go change my shirt. I'll be in the other room if you need me." He smiled and turned to leave, but she grabbed his shirt tail to stop him. He looked around at her curiously and she blushed.

"T-Thank you Thomas." She whispered.

His smile brightened. "You're welcome."

She returned his smile and released his shirt tail. He looked down at her for another moment before he turned and left the room, closing the door shut behind him. She stood there, standing still for several long moments. She held the necklace firmly in her hand as she looked at the closed door in front of her. Thomas had gone to all that trouble, had thought so carefully of something like that, just for her. All because he knew she would like it. Her heart swelled in her chest, and she couldn't help but smile and giggle, the emotions running through her. She'd gone and done it, hadn't she? She'd fallen for him, despite how much she'd fought it before. But there was no denying it now.

She composed herself and grabbed a new shirt from her drawer. The party was starting soon and she wanted to look at least half decent. She tugged her sweaty one over her head and tossed it onto her bed. Tugging the clean shirt on over her head, she walked over to the mirror, grabbing her hairbrush to fix her hair. She tugged her hair through the brush as she looked at her reflection. Looking at the woman who stood before her, she was almost unable to recognize the person she'd become. She _had _become happier, as Thomas had said. She had him to thank for that. She'd never been so happy in her life, and over such small things that he did.

She placed the brush back on the counter and went to the door to head back upstairs. She decided, as she headed up the stairs, that she would talk to Thomas later that night. She'd hidden so much from him, from everyone else, and it wasn't fair of her. The thought of telling him even some of the things from her past terrified her, but she knew in her heart that Thomas would never judge her, or think any differently of her. He seemed to genuinely care about her, and even though she'd put up her walls around him, he'd been so patient, just waiting for her to take them down. She realized that now. But how would he react when she did tell him?


	8. Chapter 8

Thomas had gone back upstairs to help Nathan set out the food when he'd seen Bella bounding up the stairs to join them. She instantly ran over to Fuzzy to help her set up some of the lighting, to help keep the deck lit as the party started. It brought him joy as he saw the necklace dangling around her neck, proudly displayed over her shirt. Even from a distance, he could hear Fuzzy asking her about it, but he turned his attention back to helping Nathan, a smile on his face.

When they'd been in the Moldor marketplace, he'd remembered the jewelry stand that he'd seen the last time they'd been there. He'd sent her up to the pastry shop so that he could see if they still sold the bluebird pendent, as it had reminded him so much of her. He didn't know exactly why he'd wanted to get it for her, and at the time he'd just thought it would be something cute for her to have. She didn't have many things on the ship that were hers, and he'd initially thought it could be just something for her to call her own. But he'd realized as he'd seen the look on her face when she'd opened her eyes, and had seen it in the mirror, that it was something to remind her of him. It was to remind her that he was there for her, and that he wasn't going anywhere.

She'd spent so much of her time there trying to keep everyone as far from her as she could, pushing all of them away. But he wanted her to know, in the only way he knew how to, without words, that he wasn't going to be pushed away. And if it took him years before she finally opened up to him, he knew that he would wait. Without even knowing it, he'd fallen in love with this girl. And he didn't care how long it took; he was going to make her fall in love with him too.

Morgan walked forward and held up his bottle. "Alright everyone! I'd like to say a few words real quick before we all start."

"Oh here we go…" Eduardo grumbled as he leaned against a table near Thomas.

Morgan elbowed Eduardo. "Everyone grab a glass, come on, this is a toast now after all!" Everyone laughed and went forward and poured themselves a drink from the table. Bella came over and stood next to Thomas, Fuzzy at her other side. As soon as everyone had a drink in hand, Morgan raised his bottle up, and waited for everyone to raise their glasses.

"I won't go on for long, this'll only take a second. I just wanted to say, to both Bella and Fuzzy, welcome aboard. You two girls have been a lot of fun, and life seems a little bit better with you two with us. I hope you both continue to stay with us, and I hope we all have many more adventures together." Morgan then held his bottle out further and clinked it against everyone's glass.

Bella smiled. "Captain, that was really nice. Thank you."

"Yeah Captain, that means a lot to us girls." Fuzzy added as Russell came over to stand next to her.

Morgan laughed. "No problem! Now, let's party! That's what we're really here for!" Grabbing his bottle up, he took a few slugs from the bottle and laughed.

Thomas stood next to Bella as they all talked and laughed. She seemed to enjoy herself as Fuzzy joked around with one another. Thomas was glad, she deserved to have some fun. He'd always gotten the feeling that she hadn't had much in her life, and was glad that she was now getting some much deserved fun in. The group snacked on the food that Nathan had prepared for them, happily munching on the sweet treats. The most popular attraction, however, was the couple of bottles of rum that Captain had sat out. While the girls and himself abstained from it, the rest of the boys eagerly gulped the liquid down.

Someone started playing music at one point, and they all attempted to dance. Fuzzy grabbed Bella and pulled her into the middle of the deck, dancing crazily and trying to get her to join. Bella was hesitant at first, but finally joined in with Fuzzy, mimicking her dancing awkwardly as they jumped about to the music. Thomas laughed as he watched the two. Fuzzy was good for Bella. She tried to pull her more out of her comfort zone than he did. Sometimes it worked, and sometimes it didn't. But just then, as he watched Bella's face light up, he knew that it had worked.

After a few minutes, Fuzzy released Bella from her dance death grip, and ran over to Russell, pulling him out onto the dance floor. He, as well as the rest of the crew, laughed as Russell clumsily tried to follow her lead, but failed miserably. Bella came over next to him and stood, laughing with him as they all continued to watch Russell attempt to dance. The sight itself was amusing enough, but as soon as Nathan and Christopher went out to join the dancing, the amusement factor increased tenfold. Thomas found himself almost doubled over laughing as the two drunkenly tried to dance alongside Russell and Fuzzy.

Thomas looked down at Bella, observing her smile and laughter as she watched everyone. He grabbed her hand and pulled her out onto the dance floor without giving it a second thought. Instead of resisting him, he heard her giggle as he pulled her up to him and attempted to dance as Fuzzy was trying to dance with Russell. It was quite strange to him, and he ended up just flailing his arms and legs about. He never claimed to be the most graceful dancer. But Bella laughed as she watched him, and soon joined him, her movements as awkward as his. He was having a blast, and from the looks of it, so was she.

In the distance, he could hear Eduardo groan. "Not these idiots."

Thomas stopped dancing to look over to where Eduardo was looking. He could see as the Rika began pulling up next to the Sirius. The music soon stopped and everyone looked over to see as the Rika tied itself down. Thomas pulled Bella behind him as he knew Captain Alan would soon board, and he was not in the mood for him to attempt to take Bella with him. In the corner of his eyes, he could see Russell pulling Fuzzy behind him as well, as he probably didn't want Alan to try to take Fuzzy back to his ship either. Couldn't the guy take a hint?

Alan stepped onto the ship, his usual cocky grin plastered to his face. "What'd you stop for? We came to join the party!"

Nathan rolled his eyes. "You weren't invited, that's why."

"Oh come on, that's not very nice!"

"What do you want Alan?" Morgan asked, his voice sounding annoyed.

"I just wanted to join in on the party! I've recently gotten a new crew member, and I told him all about the radiant Bella, and he just had to meet her. He was as excited about her as I am." Alan replied happily. As he finished his statement, a man stepped forward from behind Alan, his hands behind his back as he smiled at the group. He appeared better dressed than Alan, Thomas thought as he looked at the man beside Alan. His hair was slicked back, and stood well over a foot taller than Alan. He didn't appear to be a pirate, so what was he doing with Alan?

"Yes, I just had to meet her." The man purred, his voice sounding slightly arrogant as he looked down his nose at the group. He almost appeared to be some sort of naval officer, had he not been with Alan, Thomas would have thought he was.

Thomas glanced over his shoulder to look at Bella, who was still standing somewhere behind him. What he saw next, he could only describe as a look of pure horror on her face. The look almost took him aback as he looked at her face, her eyes wide and her face paled considerably. She looked like the ghost of the woman who he'd been dancing with before. But she wasn't looking at him. And as he looked to where her gaze was directed he realized that it was on the man standing in front of them. Why did she look so terrified? He went to ask her what was wrong, but stopped when the man spoke up.

"Bella, it's been a long time." The man said, slowly making his way towards her.

"J-Jeremy…" Thomas heard her whisper weakly, her shaking voice barely audible. Thomas looked back at Bella. She knew this man?


	9. Chapter 9

Bella stood frozen, looking at the man making his way towards her. Her heart felt like it had stopped the minute he stepped from behind Captain Alan. No. No it couldn't possibly be… She had to be dreaming, right? No, dreaming wasn't the word… it was like her worst nightmare had come alive… again… She watched as Jeremy quickly walked around Thomas before he could protest, and stand in front of her. His eyes twinkled knowingly down at her as he stepped past Thomas to her. Why? She'd finally found a place he couldn't find her… and yet here he was…

He reached out and grabbed her chin, tilting it up to look into his face. "Finally found you Bella. You've been a naughty girl, running from me." She felt her body tremble as she swallowed, his hand squeezing her chin tightly.

Thomas reached forward and slapped Jeremy's hand away from her, and shoved himself in between the two. "I don't know who the hell you are, but don't touch Miss Bella."

Jeremy grinned at Thomas. "Oh, I see. She hasn't told you about me, that's cute."

Bella's eyes were glued to Jeremy, standing in front of Thomas, but glaring down at her. It was happening all over again, and she was terrified of what he would do now. It would only be a matter of time now. She should have known years ago that she would never be able to escape it, escape him. She'd been too naïve, and now she'd brought more people into it. Suddenly though, she watched as the Sirius crew came over and stood in front of her, as if to shield her from him. Why were they doing this? Did she look as afraid as she felt?

"Fuzzy," Thomas called over his shoulder without looking, "take Miss Bella downstairs while we escort this gentleman back to his ship."

Bella felt a hand wrap around her arm and finally tore her gaze from Jeremy to see Fuzzy, smiling weakly at her as she pulled her towards the stairs without a word. Bella glanced back over her shoulder to see Jeremy smiling menacingly at her, and then waved. As if he knew he'd see her again soon. But why would she be surprised? He always did. He always had.

Tears stung her eyes as Fuzzy walked her into her room and closed the door behind them, locking it securely. Fuzzy didn't say a word to her as she slowly walked over to her side, touching her arm gently as if to comfort her. It was then that she collapsed to the floor, wracked with the terror that she'd been carrying all those years. Refusing to let her tears fall, she slammed her hands against the floor and bit her lip to keep from screaming. This couldn't be happening. How had he found her again? Fuzzy rushed to her side and sat on the floor next to her, watching Bella slam her fists against the floor, unsure of what to say or do.

She had to leave, she realized. He knew she was there now, and she knew exactly what he would do if she stayed there. Without a word, she leapt up from the floor and ran over to her dresser, forcefully pulling it open. Grabbing her things from inside, she threw them onto her bed hastily.

Fuzzy rushed to her side again, grabbing her arm to keep her from throwing her things into her bag. "Bella, what are you doing? Where are you going?"

"H-He found me. I have t-to go. I h-have to go." She replied, trying to tear her arm from Fuzzy's grip.

"Who found you? Who was that man?"

"J-Jeremy."

"Who's Jeremy?"

Bella looked at her friend then. "M-My worst nightmare."

Fuzzy knitted her brows together, and grabbed Bella by her shoulders. "What are you talking about Bella?" A knock came from the door and Bella instantly looked up. Thomas poked his head inside, and walked in slowly.

Fuzzy released her hold from Bella and looked at Thomas. "Did you get him to leave?"

Thomas nodded. "Yeah, they're gone now."

"H-He'll be back." Bella said quietly, going back to throwing her things into a bag.

Thomas rushed forward. "Bella, what are you doing?"

"She keeps going on about how she has to leave, because he found her or something like that." Fuzzy answered as she tried to get Bella to stop.

"Fuzzy, would you mind going upstairs for a little bit? Russell was looking for you I think." Thomas said quietly to her, and Fuzzy nodded knowingly.

Fuzzy grabbed Bella quickly from behind and hugged her friend tightly in her arms. "I'll be upstairs if you need me." Releasing Bella, she turned and left, closing the door firmly behind her.

Fuzzy's hug had stopped Bella momentarily, and she stood, her back facing Thomas as she looked down at the disheveled mess of clothes on her bed. Why were they all being so nice to her? Especially now? She felt Thomas's hand on her shoulder, turning her to look at him. Seeing his concerned eyes, full of worry instead of hatred and anger, she fell back onto her bed, sitting down on top of her things. He grabbed one of the chairs and pulled it over, sitting it in front of her. Sitting down in the chair, he leaned forward towards her and grabbed her hand, squeezing it gently.

"Stop being so nice to me." Bella said, keeping her eyes firmly planted on the ground.

"No."

"You wouldn't be so nice to me if you knew… if you knew…"

Thomas smiled at her softly. "If I knew what?"

"If you knew…" She repeated.

Thomas cupped her cheek softly with his hand, looking into her face. "You can tell me Bella. I'm not going to hurt you." A tear fell down her cheek at his statement. She knew he was telling the truth, but he'd soon change his tune when she told him.

"About Jeremy."

"Who's Jeremy?" Thomas prodded gently.

She choked back a sob. "He's… he's my ex-fiancée."

"Your ex-fiancée?"

Bella nodded. "Yeah."

Thomas nodded thoughtfully, and smiled at her again, a very gentle smile that somehow managed to calm her slightly. "I know this has to be hard… but you can tell me. I'll understand if you don't want to… but please Bella, let me in. I want to help you. "

Bella took in a deep breath. Perhaps it was finally time to tell him… "A long time ago… my parents, before they died… they wanted me to have a nice life. See… I grew up in a really poor town. Poverty-stricken. There were no streets, just dirt and mud… And they said they wanted… wanted better for me. So they decided to arrange a marriage for me. They'd met this man, who they said was a perfect match for me… it was Jeremy… They passed away shortly after we met, as they both struggled with… with their health…"

Bella flicked away a tear before continuing. "Jeremy was really kind to me… at first… he was loving, and doting, and had a nice job with the navy at the time. He was everything my family had wanted for me. And then shortly after our engagement… it started…."

Thomas knitted his brows together, stroking her cheek softly. "What started?"

"I remember the first time it happened… he'd come home after a long day at work, and he said he was quite tired. I pestered him with too many questions after he'd walked in the door, asking him what he wanted for dinner, asking about his day, things like that… and that was when he'd hit me…"

Thomas's facial expression darkened considerably. "He beat you, didn't he?"

Bella nodded, diverting her gaze from Thomas, ashamed at her own memories. "It started as just once every now and then, and he was so apologetic about it afterwards that my stupid, naïve self just brushed it off. He wouldn't do it again, I'd tell myself. I was in no position at the time to do anything else but stay. I had nowhere else to go, especially since my parents had passed away. But then it started to become once every week… then once every day… until it got to the point where it was just about every time he saw me. He stopped apologizing for it after a while too, saying that I shouldn't have provoked him. It got worse when he lost his job with the navy… And then he even started changing his method of how he did it…"

"… What'd he do?" Thomas asked, his voice sounding slightly different from before.

"He usually would just slap me, punch me, throw me against things. Then he started to become more… creative… A few times, when I would be cooking dinner, he'd grab my hand, or my arm, and would hold it against the burner until it burned me… his favorite was his sword though…"

"He'd… he'd cut you with his sword?"

She nodded again. "He started doing that one more frequently. He liked that… he liked that a lot…"

"Bella… can I … can I see them?" She heard Thomas whisper, his voice strained. She knew what he meant. He wanted to see her scars. She nodded reluctantly. She slowly rolled up her sleeves, showing him all the scars that littered her body. She knew he didn't doubt what she'd said, just from the look in his eyes. She heard him gasp, and his fingers ran over one of the pink, puckered scars, one of many that lined both of her arms, her legs, and her entire back. His fingers gently followed the long jagged scars of the sword, and came to rest on one of her burning scars on her shoulder.

"Oh god… and these… these are all…. All over your body?" He asked, his voice sounding strained, and if she wasn't mistaken, he sounded angry.

She nodded again and took in another deep breath. She wished that was all it was. "Until finally one day, after he'd gone to work, I ran away… See… my older brother, Josh, was about six years older than myself, had moved away to a town near Yamato… he'd been one of the few men in the town we were from to actually get a good job… so I ran away and went to see him. It had been a year or so since I'd seen him, and I'd just broken down and told him everything. I told him that I couldn't stay with Jeremy anymore. He was appalled, and said that I could stay with him for as long as I wanted. It was a nice two weeks that I was there, just my brother and myself. My brother and I had always been extremely close when we'd been growing up. People called me Josh's little shadow, because I always used to follow him everywhere he went. It was hard on both of us when he'd moved away, and we were both happy to be together again. I managed to get a job in town, working as a waitress in a restaurant, so I wouldn't be such a burden for Josh. That was when I started wearing longer clothing though, my scars scared the people in the restaurant. I… I was coming home from work one day… I'd gotten off later than usual because it had been busy that day… and when I got back… h-he… Jeremy… was there. Josh… he saw me coming in, and motioned for me to stay hidden… Jeremy hadn't noticed. Jeremy was furious, demanding that Josh tell him where I'd gone, but Josh refused. He said that he hadn't seen me in a long time, and he wasn't sure where I'd gone. Just told him that he knew if I was smart, I'd go somewhere far away. And that was when… that was when Jeremy… he… he…"

"He what?" Thomas asked gently as Bella's voice trembled, unable to get the words out.

"He … he killed my brother…" She sobbed, letting the tears that she'd been holding back all those years flow down her face. She buried her hands in her face and let herself sob, feeling all the same horrible emotions she'd felt that day all those years ago. Thomas's eyes widened and he grabbed Bella, pulling her into his lap. She didn't care, she grabbed a hold of his shirt and sobbed like she hadn't cried in years.

"Oh Bella…"

"He killed… he killed my brother, because he wouldn't tell him where I was… so… so I ran… and I've been running for… for two years… but he always finds me… he always finds me…"

Thomas cradled her against his chest, holding her securely in his arms. She felt his body shake, as hers was, and she clung onto him. "I promise you Bella. He's never… ever… going to hurt you again… do you understand me?"

"You don't understand Thomas… he'll kill anyone he finds has been hiding me… I thought that by… by sailing the sea on a pirate ship… I'd finally be able to escape him… but he still managed to find me… he's going to come for me again… and because of me… you all are in danger… It's all my fault… all my fault… all my fault…" She continued to sob, not caring how loud she was being.

Thomas grabbed her face and held it up, so she could look into his face. "Bella, listen to me. It is _not _your fault, you are safe here. You are a member of the Sirius now. No one is going to let him hurt you ever again. Especially me, do you understand me? I will never let him hurt you again. Nod your head if you understand me."

Slowly, she nodded her head, barely able to see him through her tears. "I…"

"I will not let him hurt you. You are safe here." Thomas repeated as he wiped the tears from her cheeks. She looked up into his eyes and for the first time in a very long time, she felt safe, safe in his arms.


	10. Chapter 10

Thomas closed the door behind him quietly, making sure not to make any noise. Bella had stayed in his arms for several hours. It had taken him a good bit of convincing on his part to get her to stay on the Sirius, as she'd continued to say that she had to get away over and over again. But he refused. She'd cried uncontrollably, and he'd held her in his arms, comforting her until she'd finally fallen asleep. Even after he'd felt her fall asleep, feeling her shallow breaths, he continued to hold her, stroking her hair gently.

The amount of rage he'd felt when she'd been telling him about her past, was beyond the point of even being able to describe it. He'd somehow managed to contain his anger, allowing her to finally let everything out, and cry in his arms. Every mark on her body, every scar, every blemish on her perfect skin, stirred something in Thomas that he had never felt before. It brought about an anger inside of him that he didn't know he was even capable of.

But he desperately wanted to march back upstairs, track the Rika back down, and give this Jeremy guy the beating that he so deserved. This woman though, Thomas thought as he looked down at her, this beautiful, shy, quiet woman had essentially gone through hell. And she was still standing. She was a hell of a lot stronger than she gave herself credit for, and he was going to make it his mission to make her realize that. This guy had tortured this woman, in every possible way you could torture someone. This same woman Thomas found himself so desperately in love with that he could barely breathe. But if she thought for a minute that her past was going to deter him from loving her, she was dead wrong. It only made him love her more. He couldn't tell her how he felt about her, not just yet, she wasn't ready for that just yet. He'd have to continue to be patient with her, as she carried just as many mental scars as physical ones, but the time would come. She'd finally let some of her walls down, and had let him in. He couldn't get greedy just yet.

He untangled her arms from around him, wanting to get some water from the kitchen for her. He was going to run in and run out, hopefully before she woke back up. He didn't want to leave her alone any longer than he had to, wanting to continue to hold her in his arms. He wasn't sure if holding her was comforting her more, or himself. He softly tucked her into her bed, and walked outside. Closing the door gently behind him, he heard a shuffling noise coming from the room next door, and sighed.

"You can come out now." He whispered. He glanced down the hallway and saw two heads pop out from the next room down, Fuzzy and Russell. They walked out of the room and came to a stop by him. They'd surely heard everything that Bella had said, as he saw tears streaming down Fuzzy's face. That in itself was incredible to Thomas, as he'd never seen Fuzzy shed a tear.

Fuzzy hiccupped quietly as she rubbed a hand over eyes. "P-Poor Bella…"

"I… I had no idea…" Russell whispered.

"None of that matters now. The only thing we have to worry about now, is keeping her safe." Thomas replied.

"Do you think he'll be back?" Fuzzy asked, his eyes meeting Thomas's.

Thomas's eyes narrowed. "I wouldn't doubt it, from what she told me. But I'd rather die than let him lay another hand on her ever again. If I catch him step a foot on this ship ever again, or anywhere near her for that matter, he's going to pay for every single scar on her body. Because by the time I get through with him, he'll be praying that the devil takes mercy on his soul."

Russell's eyes widened considerably. "T-Thomas…"

"I'm impressed, I didn't ever think Thomas would ever get so worked up about anyone that he would get this angry. Not that I blame him, it's just strange hearing such anger coming from sweet little Thomas." A voice came from behind him. Thomas glanced over his shoulder to see Eduardo behind him, smirking down at him as he stepped forward. He was shortly followed by Nathan, Morgan, and Christopher. Not wanting to disturb Bella, who was still to his knowledge asleep, Thomas ushered them all back upstairs out of ear shot.

"How much of that did all of you hear?" Thomas asked quietly.

Morgan shrugged. "We didn't, those two were eavesdropping after you kicked Fuzzy out of the room. They came and told us."

Thomas nodded. "Don't… don't let her know that you all know."

"We understand. She'll tell us herself when she's ready. But at least she was able to open up to you Thomas." Nathan replied softly, patting Thomas on the back.

"I'm not surprised now though, about her always wearing those long baggy shirts. I'd been afraid several times that she'd get a heat stroke in those things with the weather we've had lately. I'd had a feeling that there was a reason she wore them, I just had no idea it would be that…" Christopher stated, looking concerned.

"How bad are they?" Fuzzy asked.

Thomas sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "There's too many too count."

Fuzzy covered her mouth and turned, burying her face in Russell's chest, who wrapped an arm around her while looking at Thomas. "Everywhere?"

"Yes. Her arms, her back, her legs. She only showed me the ones on her arms though. And even just that is bad enough."

"Shit." Eduardo cursed angrily.

Morgan folded his arms over his chest. "So what are the plans?"

"I say we go find the son of a bitch and kick the crap out of him now." Nathan said, cracking his knuckles.

Thomas shook his head. "No."

"What the hell do you mean no? What the hell happened to the whole 'praying to the devil for mercy' spiel from earlier?"

"Going after him right now would only upset her more. She's terrified that he's going to hurt us to get to her. Chasing after him right now would just make her worse. No. For right now, we continue sailing the way we had been. There's a storm coming, a pretty big one from what I've seen up on the eagle's nest. We should prepare for that. And if… if he does come, if he tries to come for her during that time, _then _we give him the hell on earth that he deserves."

Morgan nodded and slapped Thomas on the back. "I agree with Thomas. I like his plan."

"Me too." Christopher and Eduardo added at once. The rest of the group slowly agreed, and the plan was set.

Thomas turned towards the stairs to head back towards the room, but as he did, he saw Bella walking towards them. Her face was still tear stained and her hair was in a slight disarray, but she looked much calmer than she had earlier, and her usual soft smile had returned to her face. The group stood motionless as she came over and stood next to Thomas.

"Bella…" Nathan went to say, but she held up her hand, silencing him.

"Sorry, I just happened to overhear you guys talking just now, so I won't say all of what I told Thomas all over again. I would just rather not have to say it again if you guys don't mind. There are just a few things that I would like to say to you guys. I don't want you all to baby me or treat me any differently just because you all know the truth now, I don't want any kind of special treatment, so you all can just forget about any of that. I want you to treat me the same way you've been treating me since I came on this ship. Now, I do I agree with Thomas's plan. We should focus on the upcoming storm, as it is going to be considerably large from what Thomas has told me. If Jeremy does happen to show up again, we will deal with it at that time. But I want you to promise me that you won't go looking for a fight. It's bad enough I brought him here to you all, but I'll be damned if he hurts any of you because of me. So you all must promise me that you won't go looking for trouble." The group exchanged glances with one another, and nodded their agreement to Bella.

Bella smiled then at them and sighed. "Good, thank you. Now I'm going to head back down to bed, so I will see you all in the morning." As she went to turn to leave, Fuzzy came forward and grabbed Bella, pulling her into her chest.

"I'm sorry; I just wanted to hug you… I want you to make us a promise as well…"

"What's that?"

"That you'll depend on us a little more. We're here for you when you need us." Fuzzy sobbed as she squeezed Bella one last time before releasing her.

Thomas saw as Bella nodded, her own eyes teary again as she smiled up at Fuzzy. "I promise. Thank you Fuzzy." With smiles on their faces, the rest of the group slowly dispersed, heading to their bedrooms for the night. Bella and Thomas headed back down to their own room, and Thomas closed the door behind them. Bella headed back over towards the bed and sat down on the edge, looking up at him.

"I'm sorry I didn't know…" He started.

"It's ok," She interrupted, "I'm actually glad they found out that way. I don't think I could've handled telling each of them that over and over again."

He nodded and rubbed the back of his neck with his hand. "Well I'm sure you're probably going to want to go back to sleep, so I'll just go over here." He went to head over to his hammock on the other side of the room, but felt her grab his wrist.

"Wait…" She said softly, looking up at him with soft eyes.

"What's the matter?"

"…Could… Could I ask you for a favor?"

Thomas smiled gently. "Anything."

"Would you… would you sleep in the bed with me tonight and hold me?" She asked quickly and quietly, her face blushing as she looked down.

He felt his own face blush as he looked down at her. "O-Of course."

She looked up into his eyes again. "Really?"

He nodded, looking into her eyes as she smiled. She scooted over as he went and sat down on the bed. He grabbed the blanket from the end of the bed and pulled it up as he laid down next to her, pulling her into his arms and covering them with the warm blanket.

"I'd do anything for you Bella. And I promise you that I'll protect you no matter what." He whispered into her ear, and they soon both fell asleep, snuggled closely in each other's arms.


	11. Chapter 11

Thunder cracked in the distance, and Bella looked up into the sky, seeing as the clouds began to darken around them. As Thomas had predicted, a big storm was rolling in, and the crew scrambled on deck to prepare for it. Waves around them crashed heavily into the side of the ship, rocking it from side to side. Bella held onto the mast as she continued to tie down the heavier items on the deck that they couldn't move.

No one had asked her any more questions after last night. Fuzzy had hugged her several more times than usual, but no one had said a word. She was grateful for that. She was glad that they all knew the truth, it was truly relieving, but she also didn't want them to treat her any differently because of it. It had taken her a long time to get over everything, and the pain over her brother's death still hurt, but she'd managed to persevere through it all. She knew she wasn't exactly the strongest woman around, but she was glad that everyone on board had depended on her after she'd joined the Sirius, and she didn't want that to change. It was the first time in her life that she'd felt needed, felt like she'd belonged somewhere. Though they could never replace Josh or her parents, they were like family to her now.

As she tied one load of crates down, she thought of waking that morning, still wrapped in Thomas's arms. She'd woken before he had, and had just watched him while he slept. He looked so peaceful that she hadn't wanted to wake him. She still wasn't sure why he was so nice to her, but she knew that she didn't care. He was everything to her, everything she'd ever hoped for, everything she'd ever dreamed of. He was that prince from the fairy tales that every little girl hopes for someday. Whether he realized it or not, he'd become her prince. She hadn't thought it would ever be possible, for her to actually fall in love with someone, anyone, after what had happened with Jeremy. But then she'd met Thomas. He was kind, gentle, never pushed her if he knew she was uncomfortable. He was always encouraging her, instead of beating her down. He said he wanted to protect her, to keep her safe, instead of trying to hurt her.

After he had awoken, they'd talked some more, something Bella had never known could feel so intimate. He spoke softly as if in a whisper, like a feather blowing in the wind. The smile he gave her as he spoke melted her heart and made her putty in his hands. Did he know he had this effect on her? A knock on their door was what eventually made them get up out of bed, as they were both quite comfortable lying in each other's arms. Christopher had called out to them, telling them that the storm was fast approaching and that they would need all hands on deck to secure the ship before they all bunked down.

Bella woke from her thoughts when she heard another crack of thunder, and lightning lit up the dark sky. The wind had picked up considerably, whistling loudly in the air as it whirled around the ship. She touched the pendent dangling around her neck, and tucked it into her shirt; to be sure that she didn't lose it. Bella began to fear that the waves, which were now quite large in size, would prove too much for the cargo she'd tied down. She went to double check the lines to make sure she'd secured them properly when Fuzzy came up behind her.

"Need any help?" Fuzzy shouted, trying to be heard over the howling wind.

"I'm just making sure that these lines are tied down properly!"

"I'll help! The boys said to hurry up though, we're all supposed to go bunk downstairs to try to ride it out!"

"Is everyone downstairs already?"

"Not yet! Thomas and Russell are still tying down the sails, but everyone else is downstairs. Christopher's watching the door though to make sure we all get back in alright!"Fuzzy exclaimed as she went towards the far end of the cargo and began tugging at the lines. Bella glanced up to see Thomas swinging around above her head, up on the sails, trying to tie those down as well. Russell was up there with him, but as she looked around, she saw that they were the only ones remaining on deck. They needed to hurry, as the ship was beginning to rock violently along with the waves. She hoped Thomas and Russell would be alright up there in this weather, and yanked at one of the lines.

The ship rocked violently to one side, and Bella grabbed a hold of one of the lines to stabilize herself. She looked over at Fuzzy to see her doing the same. She was about to call out to Fuzzy to see if she was alright, but as she looked up, an enormous wave of water quickly came crashing down on them. The force of the water knocked Fuzzy loose of the line she'd been holding onto, and she tumbled down towards the other side of the ship. Bella lashed out and tried to grab her hand, but she slipped right through her fingers, and washed down towards the other side of the ship. Calling out her friend's name, Bella released her line and slid down towards her friend as the water pushed both of them down towards the edge. Bella reached forward and grabbed Fuzzy's hand as Fuzzy's body started to wash over the edge.

The water rushed over both of them, and Bella found herself holding onto Fuzzy for dear life, trying to pull her back onto the ship. In the distance, she could hear both Thomas and Russell calling out both of their names. Bella yanked and pulled at Fuzzy's arm, pulling with all of her might to bring her back on. She could hear Christopher calling out to them as well, and she quickly glanced over her shoulder to see him starting to come towards her.

"Don't you dare come over here Christopher! Its way too slippery over here, I got her! Just make sure the boys get down there safely and we'll be right after them!" She shouted at him, and Christopher stopped, nodding to her and heading back towards the stairs.

"Come on Fuzzy!" She shouted to Fuzzy as Fuzzy tried to climb back up. The side of the ship proved to be too slippery from the water, and Fuzzy kicked out uselessly as she tried to help bring herself back on board.

"I'm so sorry Bella! Just let me go! I'll be ok!" Fuzzy shouted.

Bella shook her head violently from side to side, using her feet as anchors against the side of the ship and pulled with all of her might. "Don't be stupid! I'm not letting you go dummy!"

"Bella! Fuzzy! Watch out!" She heard one of the boys scream. As she glanced over her shoulder to see what they were shouting about, she saw another wave crashing onto the ship roughly around the same place it had before. She closed her eyes as the water slammed into her, shoving her off board and into the water alongside Fuzzy.


	12. Chapter 12

Thomas and Russell had been tying down the sails up on the mast when the weather had taken a turn for the worse. The wind howled around them, and the rain stung their eyes as they fought with the ropes and rustling fabric. It had been agreed earlier that they would tie down everything they could, and would then return down below to ride the storm out. It was much worse than Thomas had predicted, and he feared that the ship would take a heavy beating. Russell had come up to help him with the lines, but the two of them struggled to hold onto the mast. The ship rocked violently as the waters began to churn around them.

"Shit! I didn't think it would be this bad!" Russell shouted over at him. The only way that either of them could hear one another was by shouting, as the wind and the thunder combined proved to be quite loud.

"I didn't either!"

"Is this a hurricane?"

"Don't know, might be. The wind's picked up quite a bit so I wouldn't doubt it. The last storm we hit wasn't quite this bad, but it was enough to damage the lines, so be sure to secure them! And make sure you hold on, the wind alone will send you flying!"

"Let's hurry up at get these lines down so we can get back inside then!"

Thomas grunted as he yanked at one of the lines to secure it. "Working on it!"

"How many more do we have left?"

"Probably about three or four more."

Russell laughed. "Piece of cake!"

Thomas shielded his eyes from the stinging rain. "Where are the girls?"

"As far as I know, they were trying to tie down some of the cargo."

"You mean they're still down on the deck?"

Russell shrugged, squinting as he looked down below. "I suppose, I can't really see them from up here! It's raining too hard for me to see them, but I'm sure they've probably finished by now and have gone down below."

Thomas was reaching for one of the sails when Russell suddenly shouted a warning to him, and Thomas held onto the mast tightly as a large wave threw the ship to the side. Thomas's entire body lashed to one side as he held onto the mast. He looked up to see Russell had done the same, grabbing at one of the lines to secure himself. Thunder cracked violently in the air over them, its sound threatening and angry. This storm was definitely going to be a bad one, and Thomas merely hoped that it wouldn't last too terribly long. The crew wouldn't be able to handle the violent waves if it lasted more than a few days. Much less the ship. He wasn't sure how long the ship would hold out in such horrendous weather conditions.

Russell glanced over at Thomas shook his head. "Screw this, there's only two left anyway. I'll buy Captain some brand new damned sails next time we hit port, we need to get out of here."

Thomas nodded. "I agree!"

As the two grabbed onto the mast to begin their descent, another wave crashed into the ship, sending it violently to one side once again. Thomas grabbed the mast with both hands, and held on, squeezing his eyes shut as he concentrated on keeping his hands firmly wrapped around the mast. The rain tried to pry his hands away, but he managed to hold on long enough to balance himself. He heard an answering wave of water as it crashed onto the deck below roughly.

A scream rang out from the deck, and it reverberated in Thomas's ears as panic hit him. Both he and Russell looked at one another, quickly exchanging worried looks and looked down at the deck. Thomas watched as the water crashed into both Fuzzy and Bella, who had apparently still been on deck, dragging Fuzzy away towards the edge of the ship. Bella had managed to grab a hold of her, and slammed into the side of the ship from the force of it. Water swirled around them as Bella held onto Fuzzy for dear life, trying desperately to pull her back on board. Thomas began to scramble down the mast, alongside Russell, as they rushed as quickly as they could to the girls. The ship rocked violently underneath them, causing them to take more time than they usually would in climbing down to the deck.

Then Russell shouted at the girls as another wave came crashing down to the ship. Thomas called out to Bella, watching helplessly as the water slammed into her. Thomas felt his heart just about stop when he saw that she was no longer on the ship. Continuing to call out her name, he jumped down the rest of the way to the deck, stumbling on the slippery deck surface as he ran over to the edge of the ship. He hoped, as he stumbled about, that they had somehow managed to hold onto the ship, and were just waiting for them to grab them and hoist them back over onto the ship. He threw his body into the side of the ship and looked over the side, but didn't see either of the girls. Russell ran up next to him, both scanning the water frantically.

Only hours ago he'd been telling Bella that he would protect her no matter what, and that he would always been there for her when she needed him. But he hadn't been there for her when she needed him just then. The moment when her life literally depended on him, and he couldn't get to her in time. His stomach bubbled dangerously in his belly as he and Russell both frantically called out both of their names, searching the dark ocean waters. Thomas looked out slightly in the distance and saw a small head bobbing up and down in the waves, and without thinking, he threw himself into the stormy waters below.


	13. Chapter 13

Pitch black. That was all that Bella could see. Complete darkness. Her body felt as if it were floating, almost like she was drifting on a cloud. She somehow felt relaxed and calm, even amongst the looming darkness. A voice rang out melodically in Bella's mind, saying her name over and over again. Where had that voice come from? She knew that she'd heard it before, but she couldn't put her finger on it. It was too dark there for her to see who it was, but she knew that voice.

The voice rang out one last time, and Bella awoke abruptly, coughing up a lungful of water. Hacking up sea water, she opened her eyes, trying to focus on what was happening around her. Her vision was hazy, but she felt as someone held her, patting her back as she choked. She closed her eyes, to go back to sleep and return to her dream world, when she felt a pat on her cheek. She tried to focus her gaze on the face in front of her, and she squinted her eyes. As her vision stabilized a bit more, she saw Thomas, sitting over her with a worried look on his face. His hands were on either side of her face, pushing back some of the wet hair from her face.

"T-Thomas?" She whispered.

He nodded, his eyes full of concern. "Yeah, it's me. Are you alright?"

"Wh-Where are we? What happened?"

"You and Fuzzy fell overboard. We washed up on some island nearby."

That was right. She began to remember a little as Thomas looked her over, probably to check for her for injuries. She didn't think she'd been injured, but her head sure felt dizzy. How long had she been in the water for? She looked around the sandy beach in which she found herself. The sand was wet from the storm, and storm clouds hovered threateningly overhead. Palm trees surrounded them, their leaves whistling in the slight breeze. They looked like they were more inland, away from the shore. Thomas must have dragged her up there. She rubbed her head as she listened to the waves crashing on the shore in the distance, sounding much calmer than it had earlier.

Bella sat up, instantly worried. "Where's Fuzzy?!"

"I'm sure she's fine. She's with Russell. We got separated from them in the water, but I'm sure there here somewhere."

"Oh I hope so, I hope they're alright." She closed her eyes and sighed.

"They will be, I'm sure of it."

"Should we go look for them?"

Thomas nodded. "Probably, but right now you need to rest. It's starting to get dark out and I don't think it'll be a smart idea for us to go looking for them in the dark anyway. We'll go first thing in the morning." Bella wrapped her arms around her legs as a shiver wracked her body. While the weather had seemed to have improved, the wind was still blowing light around them.

"You ok? You look a little cold." Thomas said, apparently seeing her shiver.

She nodded. "A little, but I'll be alright."

"I'll go grab some wood and see about starting us a fire, ok? Stay here, I'll be right back."

He smiled softly at her, then stood up and headed over towards the palm trees. Bella watched him as he began pulling at the bark on the trees. He'd saved her. Though it had been a thought in the back of her mind, she hadn't really thought about it until just then. He'd seen her fall overboard, and despite the danger, he'd jumped into the stormy ocean waters to go after her. Not that it surprised her though, as Thomas always seemed to put her safety above his own. Thomas walked back over to her, waking her from her thoughts, as he started to set up a fire for the both of them.

"Do you need any help?" She asked, feeling rather useless.

He glanced over at her. "Yeah actually, I'm going to rub these two sticks together, and when you see a spark, I want you to blow on it for me to get the flame going."

She crawled over next to him and leaned forward, watching carefully as he grabbed a stick from his little wood pile and began rubbing it between his hands fiercely over one of the logs. Thomas rubbed the stick in between his hands, a concentrated expression on his face as he moved the stick. Bella saw a small trail of smoke coming from the wood and bent down further to look. As soon as the first spark appeared, she gently blew on it, encouraging the tiny flame as it began to grow larger and larger. Thomas threw the stick away and tossed another piece of wood over the flames, making the fire grow even larger.

Bella came and sat next to him, extending her hands in front of the fire, warming her chilled body. She and Thomas sat in silence for a while as they warmed themselves, watching as darkness overtook the skies. Bella's thoughts drifted to her other two friends, worrying about them. She mentally willed that the two of them were sitting somewhere on the beach nearby, perfectly safe. She smiled as she thought of Fuzzy and Russell, possibly sitting somewhere on the island doing the same thing she and Thomas were. Fuzzy would love that. Would give her the alone time with Russell she wanted at least. As Bella sat there, she suddenly felt a pair of arms wrap around her, feelings as Thomas hugged her to his chest. Although just as wet as she was, his body felt warm against her.

"You feeling any warmer?" He asked, his voice tender.

She nodded against his shoulder. "Yeah I am. Thank you."

"No problem."

"And hey, Thomas?"

"Hm?"

"Thank you… for saving my life… Thank you." She whispered. She felt his arms tighten around her, pulling her closer against him.

"T-Thomas?" She asked when he remained silent.

"What in the world were you thinking before?" He whispered, cradling her against him as if she were something precious and fragile.

"What do you mean?"

"You could have been killed. You and Fuzzy both should have been downstairs, where you both would have been safe."

"We… we were just finishing with tying down the cargo. The weather just got worse." She replied quietly. His body continued to shake against hers. What was wrong?

He pulled back from her slightly, gazing down into her eyes. She felt as one hand came up and cupped her cheek. "I could've lost you."

Bella brought her hand up and held the hand against her cheek. "But you didn't. I'm right here."

Thomas leaned forward and pressed his forehead against hers. "But I almost did. You went overboard and you were drowning Bella. I managed to get you ashore and up here, but god you wouldn't wake up…" His voice trailed off as he swallowed thickly and closed his eyes, as if the memory was too painful to continue.

"Oh Thomas. I'm so sorry I put you through that…"

He shook his head, his eyes darting back open. "It wasn't your fault. You were just trying to help Fuzzy. But Bella I need to tell you something and it can't wait any longer."

"What is it?"


	14. Chapter 14

Thomas swallowed nervously as he held Bella in his arms. "I haven't told you it before because I didn't want to scare you off, with everything that had happened with you and Jeremy. I wanted to wait and be patient and wait for the right time to tell you, but almost losing you just now… I need to tell you."

As Thomas had been sitting next to Bella by the fire, his mind had wandered dangerously back to the hours before then. Seeing her in the ocean, bobbing up and down helplessly in the stormy waters. It hadn't even been a second thought for him, throwing himself into the ocean to go after her. In his mind, over and over again, he'd just been hoping that he would get to her in time, before the current consumed her. He'd been separated from Russell and Fuzzy in the process, but his only concern had been for Bella. He'd fought against the waves as he made his way to her, and had finally been able to grab a hold of her. But she hadn't been conscious. It had scared him down to his very core. If it had taken him any longer to reach her, she might have drowned…

The ship was out of sight at that point, leaving the two of them seemingly stranded in the dangerous ocean waters. In the chaos however, Thomas had seen the outlines of an island, not too terribly far from where they were. But it would be quite a swim. Even in calm waters by himself, it would've been a challenge. But he couldn't give up, not with Bella's life depending on it. He swam as fast and as hard as he could, fighting against the gargantuan waves, threatening to swallow them both up. It had taken him some time, holding her in his arms, but he'd been able to do it.

He pulled her up onto the beach, with the little strength he had left in his body, but she was still unconscious. And on top of that, when he went to check, she wasn't breathing. He'd ended up performing CPR on her, praying that she would pull through. He'd never been so afraid in his life, then seeing her lying on that beach, pale as a ghost and unconscious. He could have lost her forever. And though he was still afraid that by telling her how he felt about her, she would run in the opposite direction, he knew he had to try. He'd regret it for the rest of his life if she never knew how he really felt about her, to know just how much he cherished her.

"Tell me what?" Bella whispered as he pulled back and looked at her face, cupping her cheek in his hand.

"I love you. I love you so much Bella. There's not a minute in my day that I'm not thinking about you, and just seeing you every day makes me happier than any man alive. I will wait until the end of time for you if that is what it takes, because I know that loving anyone after what happened to you is scary. But I'm willing to wait for you Bella because I love you."

Her eyes widened slightly at his confession. "Y-You love m-me?"

Thomas nodded, feeling his cheeks burn. "I do. And I'm sorry I'm just dumping this all on you at once, but I wanted you to know that. I know that you probably don't want to be with me right now, with everything that's happened to you, but that's ok. I'll wait. I'm not going to push you to do anything that you don't want to know, and I promise I never will. Just know that."

A smile slowly crept on her face. "You really love me?"

"Yes, I do."

"I can't… I can't believe that you… that you love me…."

"I'll tell you it as many times as you want me to. I love you Bella."

Bella grabbed a section of her hair and fiddled with it as she looked away from him. "Well… I… um… well I guess… I guess I should tell you something as well…"

Thomas knitted his eyebrows together confusedly. "What?"

"I… um… I lo…. I lo…. Lov…." She sighed frustratingly, "I can say it… I can… just give me a minute…" Thomas's heart soared. Was she trying to say what he thought she was trying to say?

He smiled at her. "You don't have to say it if you don't want to. I know it's a lot to say."

"No! I want to… just give me a minute… I can do it I promise…" She insisted, taking a deep breath and looking him in the eye, "Thomas… I lo…. I love… you too… I love you too…" Thomas felt as if he could fly, she loved him back? Was he dreaming? If he was he hoped that he would never wake up.

Without thinking, from the pure joy he felt, he pulled her face towards him and pressed his lips against hers. Her lips were so soft and sweet that Thomas thought he'd died and gone to heaven. She tensed for a moment, and Thomas quickly pulled back.

"Oh, I'm sorry! I shouldn't have done that! I moved too quickly!" He apologized, pulling back from her. After all that he'd said about not pushing her and waiting, and he'd gone and kissed her. He covered his face with one hand and groaned mentally at himself. Way to trip over the finish line there Thomas, he thought aggravatingly to himself.

"Would you mind… would you… would you do that again please?" He heard her whisper.

He turned back and looked at her. "What?"

"K-Kiss me… again… please…" She said quietly, her cheeks bright red. How could he resist that? More gently this time, he brought her lips to his, and kissed her.


	15. Chapter 15

The next morning, Bella awoke and stretched gingerly in her spot, her body warmed by the sand below her. Light trickled in through the palm tree leaves above, rustling in the wind. She yawned as the light shone on her face, further waking her. An arm wrapped around her waist, she couldn't help but smile to herself. Turning over gently, as to not wake him, she turned to look into Thomas's sleeping face. He had a soft smile on his face, even in sleep. A piece of hair fell onto his face from the breeze, tickling his nose, and she watched as his nose crinkled instinctively. Giggling, she tucked it back behind his ear and his tightened around her.

It still completely boggled her mind. He'd told her that he loved her last night. A blush rose to her cheeks just thinking about it. The one thing she never knew she'd want to hear from anyone ever again after what had happened with Jeremy, was the one thing she'd realized she wanted to hear from him. Even though she was tiny bit afraid of what would happen next, she knew that Thomas would never do anything to hurt her. Though she'd never doubted it from him to start with, him risking his life like that, just for her, solidified that for her. And she loved him. Lord she loved this man. She'd known she'd had feeling for him, but seeing him there, so vulnerable last night telling her about his feelings for her, the tidal wave of love she truly felt towards him just flooded over her. It felt so natural and honest, that it had taken her breath away.

She heard him groan in protest and pulled her closer into his body. His chest was warm and she eagerly snuggled back into him, not wanting to leave him. It appeared to be still fairly early in the morning, and she still wanted to lie next to him. She'd slept better there on the sand, lying there with him, than she ever had before. She pressed her face into his chest and inhaled that smell that was purely Thomas, a smell both intoxicating and relaxing. His eyes opened slowly, blinking sleepily as he looked down at her. His small smile grew larger and he pressed a tender kiss to her forehead.

"Morning." He whispered softly, his hand tracing lines up and down the small of her back.

She smiled. "Good morning."

He sighed in an exaggerated manner. "We're going to have to get up soon aren't we?"

Bella giggled. "Yeah probably. We have to go find Russell and Fuzzy to make sure they're ok."

"I'm sure they're fine." He protested, sounding child-like as he pouted jokingly.

"We still have to go look for them."

He sighed again and looked down at her. "Alright, you're right I guess. Come on, let's go ahead and head out then."

Reluctantly moving his arm from her waist, he peeled away from her and stood up. Stretching as he stood, his shirt lifted with his movement, revealing his flat belly, making Bella blush. He held out a hand to her and helped hoist her up, pulling her to her feet. The sad smile he gave her melted her insides as he continued his pouting teasingly. He took her hand and the two of them set down to the beach in search of their friends. Noticing that she too looked disappointed in having to leave his warm embrace, he quickly turned on his heel and touched a hand to her face. She closed her eyes, smiling as she felt his lips press against hers. His warm, sweet lips against hers felt like magic still, and she was lost in his arms. Surely she was dreaming, right? But as he pulled back and smiled down at her, taking her hand, she knew she wasn't.

He held her hand firmly in his as they strolled down the beach, and Bella couldn't seem to wipe the smile from her face. She was just so incandescently happy, happier than she'd ever been in her life, and she couldn't help but to smile at him. It took her a moment to realize that she should be worried and concerned that her friends were still somewhere on the island, and she quickened her pace alongside Thomas. She hoped that Fuzzy and Russell were alright. But where could they have gone to? She wasn't sure how big the island was, or how long it could take them to find them.

Thomas seemed to notice her concern and squeezed her hand reassuringly. "Don't worry. Fuzzy's a tough bird, I'm sure she's fine."

"Who's a tough bird?!" A voice shouted from behind them. Bella spun around to see Fuzzy running towards them, coming from the opposite direction down the beach. Russell came in behind her, a bit further back from her. Fuzzy ran forward and practically tackled Bella in a hug as she latched onto her friend.

Bella hugged Fuzzy tightly. "Oh Fuzzy! I'm so glad you're ok!"

"Same to you! I'm so sorry about all of this! You were just trying to save me and you ended up getting washed away too!"

Bella looked up at Fuzzy. "Don't worry about that! At least we're all alright!" Russell and Thomas shook hands and patted one another on the back as Bella and Fuzzy continued to hug one another.

"Good to see you man." Russell said.

Thomas smiled. "You too man."

Fuzzy pulled back from Bella and looked down at her, a wicked smile on her face as she leaned forward to whisper in Bella's ear. "How are things going with you and Mister Thomas?"

Bella blushed. "G-Good."

"Good as in you finally told him how you felt and he told you how he felt…?"

Bella nodded. "Yeah."

Fuzzy hugged Bella again and spun her around. "Yay!"

"What about you and Russell?" She asked Fuzzy quietly.

Fuzzy put Bella back down on the ground and smiled, winking. "Just as good." Fuzzy took a step back towards Russell, to his side. His arm went around her shoulder as if he did it every day, and it was when Bella and Thomas's smiles were upon him that his face flushed and he looked nervously between them and Fuzzy.

"Shut up." He grumbled as he hugged Fuzzy into his side. Thomas grabbed Bella's hand and delicately pulled her to his side. She looked up at him and smiled, snuggling into his side happily. The two couples laughed amongst themselves as they stood on the beach.

Russell scratched his head. "You think they'll come get us?"

"Don't doubt it. They're probably looking for all of us now." Fuzzy answered.

Thomas stretched one arm above his head. "I don't know about you guys… but I wouldn't mind if they took their time. I'd enjoy just laying here on the beach relaxing."

Bella giggled. "Yeah, kind of like our own vacation."

"Sounds like a great idea to me!" Fuzzy said happily. The four of them sat down on the sandy beach and laid back on the sand, looking up into the now clear blue skies. Bella turned her head to look over at Thomas, who was already looking at her. She smiled and leaned forward, pressing her forehead against his. She'd be lying if she were to say that what the future held didn't scare her, but she knew that if Thomas were by her side, she could do anything. His love for her helped make her a stronger, better person. She could do anything if he was there right by her side. And for the first time in her life, she knew she had someone who wouldn't do anything to hurt or, or leave her, but someone who would stick with her through thick and thin, for better or for worse. And that knowledge just made her smile.


End file.
